Mission police: Mother charged in drowning death of her 3-year-old son
A Florida woman is behind bars in connection with the drowning death of her 3-year-old son, according to the Mission Police Department.
Hidalgo County jail records show Arlette Del Villar was booked on a charge of abandoning and endangering a child.
The drowning death occurred on July 4 at the 3200 block of Joyce Drive in Mission. Police responded to the scene at around 1:30 p.m. and found the toddler in an above ground pool, according to previous reports.
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Del Villar and children were visiting from Florida and staying at a friend’s house. According to Mission police spokesman Jorge Rodriguez Jr., Del Villar had left the home at around 6 a.m. without letting the other adults in the house or her children know she would be gone.
According to Rodriguez, Del Villar was permitted to return to Florida to bury and mourn her son with her family before coming back to the Rio Grande Valley to turn herself in.
As of Thursday, Del Villar was still in custody on a $175,000 bond.